Starting a Private Career School in Washington

After you review the requirements, you'll want to contact the Workforce Board at 360-709-4600. You need to speak with us before applying to operate a private career school in Washington state, or to advertise your school in Washington.

Note: The application process takes an average of 60 days.

What's next
After a brief discussion about your proposed school, we’ll schedule an orientation meeting.

Before the meeting, we recommend you familiarize yourself with the private vocational school licensing statute and regulations. If you haven’t already, you will need to:

If you will be operating a limited partnership or corporation, register with the Secretary of State’s office. Finally, be sure to comply with any local ordinances governing businesses in the city or county where you plan to operate.

Is your vocational training program longer than 24 hours?
If you are a provider
offering a vocational training program to the general public with a program
length of more than 24 hours, for a fee, you may need to obtain a "Private
Vocational School License" to comply with the State's Private Vocational School
Act.

Online application and required materials checklist
After you have completed these necessary first steps, you’ll be able to fill out an online application. Your user name and password will be assigned to you at your orientation meeting.

At the end of the process you’ll receive instructions to forward additional required materials. This comprehensive checklist includes everything from your business plan to descriptions of educational programs to a recent credit report. Please take a moment to review these requirements.